Railroad hand-car.



No. 642,857. Patented Feb. 6, I900. B. VAN TREECK.

RAILROAD HAND CAR (Application filed July 26, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

//////I///////I//I/ ma mama PETERS ca. FHOTQLIYNQ, WASHINGTON n c No. 642,857. Patented Feb. 6, I900. B. VAN TREECK.

RAILROAD HAND GAR.

(Application filed July 26, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shaet 2.

NlTED STATES PATENT FFICE.

RAILROAD HAND-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 642,857, dated February 6, 1900.

Application filed July 26 1899.

To all whom it may concern; 1

Be it known that I, BARNHART VAN TREEOK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Crawford, in the county of Dawes and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and useful Railroad Hand-Car, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to hand-cars, and particularly to the mechanismfor operating the same; and the intent and purpose of the present device is to provide means for positively rotating one of the truck-axles through the medium of hand-bars or levers, which through the reversal of certain mechanism are adapted to be oscillated or operated in the same direction to propel the car either forwardly or backwardly and under the control of the operators at all times, the handbars or levers being also adapted to be held stationary while the car is running on a downgrade or with sufficient impetus as not to require the application of actuating powerwith the attendant advantages and safety to the occupants of the car-platform.

The invention consists, primarily, of a handbar having a gear on one of the axles meshing with a similar gear on an inclined shaft, having also a gear on its upper end relatively engaging oppositely-disposed compound gears embodying peripheral ratchet-teeth and inner gear-teeth, the said compound gears being loosely mounted on a shaft and actuated by oppositely-disposed pairs of pawls or dogs which are thrown into engagement with the ratchet-teeth of said compound gears, one of each pair of said pawls or dogs-being brought to bear on the ratchet-teeth of said compound gears and'in diagonal lines to obtain a propulsion in one direction and disengaged and the remaining ones of the said pairs of pawls or dogs in like manner thrown into the said compound gears in an opposite diagonal line to reverse the movement of the car.

The invention further consists of the details of construction and arrangement of the several parts, which will be more fully hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a hand-car embodying the features of the invention. Fig-2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the same. Fig. 3

is a top plan View. Fig. 4 is a horizontal sec- Serial No.725,168. (No model.)

tion through the upper portion of the operating devices and showing particularly the compound gears and the shaft on which they are mounted.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to indicate corresponding parts in the several views.

The numeral 1 designates the bed or platform of a hand-car which is supported by opposite sills 2, connected by suitable cross-ties or frame-bars 3, the said bed as thus formed having suitable journal boxes 4 attached thereto, in which are rotatably mounted axles 5 and 6, having the usual flanged wheels7 on the ends thereof. The form of the car may be of any approved pattern, and the improvement resides particularly in the operating mechanism for propelling the car in either direction and controllable through a handbar. On the axle 6 a beveled pinion 8 is keyed, and meshing therewithis a similar pinion 9 on the lower end of an obliquely-disposed shaft 10, which extends through the car bed or platform and has bearing in a lower angularly-disposed journal-box 11, secured to a part of the car-bed. The disposition of this journal-box 11 may be varied; but it is preferable to arrange it in such manner that the shaft 10 will extend upwardly through the central portion of the car platform or bed through which it projects. The upper part of the shaft 10 has bearing in a suitable box carried by an obliquely-arranged cross-support 12, secured at its opposite ends to the inner portions of standards 13. The said standards comprise pairs of inwardlysloping legs 14, having their lower diverged ends secured on the platform 1 adjacent the opposite sides and at their upper ends converging toward and made continuous with or secured to heads 15, which, with caps 16, provide upper journals for a transverse shaft 17. Freely movable on the shaft 17 are oppositely-disposed compound gears 18 and 19, each of which has outer peripheral ratchetteeth 20 and inner beveled teeth 21, meshing with a pinion 22 of beveled form, keyed or made fast to the upper end of the shaft '10. The beveled pinion 22 holdsflthe gears 18 and 19 at a regular distance apart, and between the outer sides of the said gears 18 and 19 and the heads 15 of the standards 13 and also freely movable on the shaft 17 are opposite levers or hand-bars 23, connected at opposite ends by transverse grip-bars 23. On the inner faces of the levers or hand-bars 23 at opposite points relatively to the ratchet-teeth 20 of the gears 18 and 19 pawls or dogs 24, 25, 20, and 27 are pivotally mounted and when not in engagement with the said ratchet-teeth are thrown back and rest upon stop-pins or analogous devices 28, projecting inward from the opposite levers or hand-bars 23 outside of the pivotal points of the said pawls or dogs.

As previously stated, the pinion 22 holds the gears 18 and 19 at regular distances apart, and the pawls 24:, 25, 26, and 27 are of approximately the same thickness as the width of the ratchet-teeth 20 of the said gears 18 and 19, and the levers or hand-bars 23 are also held in such close engagement between the outer portions of the said gears and the heads 15 of the standards 13 that the said pawls will firmly drop into the teeth 20 without slipping or lost motion of any nature whatever.

In operation the hand-bars or levers 23 are oscillated through the grips 24, the pawls or dogs 25 and 26, for instance, being first thrown into the ratchet-teeth 20 of the compound gears 18 and 19, respectively, to rotate the latter loosely on the shaft 17 in one direction and actuate the pinion 22, the shaft 10, pinion 9, and axle 6 through the pinion 8 to propel the car forwardly, for example. During the engagement of the pawls 25 and 26 with the ratchet-teeth 20, as stated, the pawls 24 and 27 remain disengaged and are thrown back on their supporting-pins 28. When it is desired to reverse the movement of the car, the pawls or dogs 25 and 26 are thrown out from the teeth 20 and the pawls or dogs 24c and 27 thrown into said teeth, and by continuing the oscillation of the hand-bars or 1evers 23 in the same direction as before the car will be propelled in a reverse direction. This is exceptionally convenient and advantageous in that the operators can always stand in the same position, and in changing the opposite pawls or dogs, as set forth, no delay results, and during the movement of the car in either direction all of the pawls or dogs can be liberated from operative contact with the ratchet-teeth 20 and the hand-bars or levers can then be held motionless. This latter adjustment resulting in a release of the hand-bars or levers completely will take place when the car is moving with sufficient impetus on a level or downgrade and at a time when it is unnecessary to apply propelling power. By throwing all the pawls or dogs into engagement with the ratchet-teeth the movement of the car in either direction can be absolutely blocked, and this adjustment will efficiently serve to hold the car in fixed position at any time desired on the line or when under cover.

The several parts of the device are exceptionally strong, and the rigidity of the same or non-yielding relation, together with the positive response resulting from their actuation, produces a motive power for cars of the class specified exceptionally advantageous in mountain work or lines having heavy grades, and by skilful practice the several pawls or dogs could be utilized in braking the car gradually at times when found necessary.

The application of the mechanism is in its preferred form, as shown; but it will be understood that other uses might be made equally well, and to accommodate such uses itmay be necessary to change the proportions, size, and minor details of construction of the several parts. Such changes, therefore, will be made as reside fully within the scope of the invention and without detracting from the advantages.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is-- 1. In a hand-car, the combination with one of the axles, of a shaft geared thereto, upper oppositely-disposed independently-movable gears for operating the said shaft, and handbars having pawls thereon adapted to be thrown in mesh with the said gears in diagonal pairs, a reversal of the pawls operating to change the direction of movement of the car by a similar oscillation of the hand-bars or levers.

2. In a hand-car, the combination of an axle, upper gears connected thereto by intermediate driving devices, hand-bars or levers pivotally mounted adjacent said gears, and pairs of pawls or dogs pivotally. attached to the inner portion of each hand-bar or lever and adapted to be thrown into engagement with the said gears in diagonal pairs in alternation to reverse the movement of the car, without changing the direction of oscillation of the said hand-bars or levers.

3. In a hand-car, the combination of a platform having axles, a gear on one of said axles, a shaft obliquely arranged and having connection with the said gear on the axle, and also provided with a motion-imparting device at its upper end, oppositely-disposed compound gears supported above the platform of the car and each comprising outerperipheral ratchet-teeth and inner gear-teeth in continual mesh with the motion-imparting device on the upper end of the said shaft, the said compound gears having independent movement, hand-bars or levers pivotally supported adjacent the said compound gears and each having a pair of pawls or dogs pivotally attached to the inner portion thereof, the said pawls or dogs being adapted to engage the ratchet-teeth of the compound gears in diagonal pairs, and means for supporting the said compound gears and hand-bars above the car platform or bed.

4:. A hand-car having an axle with a gear thereon, gears supported above the bed or platform of the car and in operative connec tion with the said gear on the axle, hand-bars or levers movably mounted adjacent the said gears above the bed or platform, and means my own I have hereto affixed my signature in in connection with the said hand-bars or lethe presence of two Witnesses. vers for operating the said gears and the axle, 1 said means being" adjustable alternatively in BARNHART VAN rlREECK diagonal lines to change the plane of rotation Witnesses:

of the said gears. THOMAS REGAN,

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as O. K. EASTMAN. 

